Protected Mario&Luigi Syndrome (PMS) is a combination of physical, emotional and forum disturbances that occur after a user goes completely mental over a game and ends when a patch for particular flashcarts appear. Common PMS symptoms include depression, irritability, crying, oversensitivity, mood swings, the inability to add to a conversation, server lags and forum downtime. For some users PMS symptoms can be controlled with a decent flashcart or lifestyle/attitude changes such as going outside, playing different games or buying a new flash cart.

A more severe form of PMS, known as R4DS disorder (R4DSD), also known as late upgrading of a flashcart occurs in a smaller number of R4DS owners and leads to significant loss of function because of unusually severe symptoms. Some of these symptoms are posting the words "No fix for R4 owners grrr" over and over in discussion threads, the inability to read previous posts made by other users and the overwhelming urge to create topics with names similar to "Is there a fix for M&L for R4 yet". These symptoms have also been seen in DSTT flashcart owners but is alot more rare than the R4DS version of the disorder.

How common is PMS?

About 15% (statistic was created by interviewing nobody and based on nothing) of flashcart owners experience some Protected Mario&Luigi Syndrome symptoms. The incidence of true PMS has often been overestimated by including all users who experience any physical or emotional symptoms prior to a rom release. It is estimated that clinically significant PMS (which is moderate to severe in intensity and affects a flashcart owners functioning) occurs in 20% to 30% of R4DS owners and about 5% to 10% of DSTT owners. About 2% to 6% of flashcart owners are believed to have the more severe variant known as R4DSD.

When was PMS discovered?

The mood changes surrounding this condition were described as early as 5 minutes after the release of the rom to public. However, it was not until a day later that this disorder was officially recognized by the GBAtemp community. The term "Protected Mario&Luigi Syndrome" was coined yesterday.

What causes PMS?

PMS is caused by an overwhelming need to play Mario & Luigi:Bowsers Inside story, a need so great that the flashcart owners brain synapses actually misfire causing a near addict like state in the flashcart owner and the lack of a fully functioning protection bypass patch for all cards.

What are the symptoms of PMS?

A great variety of symptoms have been attributed to PMS. Users can have PMS of varying duration and severity from protected rom to protected rom. The most frequent mood-related symptoms of PMS include:

- anger and irritability,
- anxiety,
- tension,
- depression,
- crying,
- oversensitivity
- exaggerated mood swings.
- the need to ignore all other posts that came before theirs
- the inability to read posts on the page the user is on
- the creation of duplicate posts on each page
- finger fatigue from hitting the F5 key continuously.
- sleep disturbances with sleeping on a keyboard or too little (insomnia caused by waiting for patch/fix)

What treatments are available for PMS?

The treatment of PMS can sometimes be as challenging as waiting patiently. Various treatment approaches have been used to treat this condition. Some measures include recommending a new flashcart which seems to help some users. One recommendation includes buying the original cartridge but this method is often poo-pooed by flashcart owners.

What medications are used to treat PMS?

At the moment the most succesful medications are the M3 Real, M3i Zero, CycloDS and Acekard 2. Although playing a different game has often yielded successful results.

Can exercise help relieve some of the symptoms of PMS?

Yes, because it distracts from the overwhelming need to play the video game although this option may not be suitable for some flashcart owners.

Is there a "cure" for PMS?

The only real "cure" for PMS is to buy the original cartridge or getting a flashcart that plays the rom successfully.

Thanks Veho mate! I was going to do something similar to what I did with Kingdom Hearts with a picture strip and everything but this felt better suited to the way people are acting. Although I was a little lazy and just edited an advert for PMS medicine! lol

hah, this is awesome. I've been trolling this site a lot recently to find a good flashcart as I'm relatively new to the scene (younger brother kinda got me into it, who knows, he might be a member here too) and to check on scene releases, etc.

The FG quotes are def appreciated and I believe this thread should be linked/edited into the OP of the ML3 thread so as to divert the guys who go in "where be R4/DSTT patch?" (sidenote: I'm a current DSTT owner...not so much trippin over this patch thingy.